Morrill Act

About the Author

Justin Smith Morrill was born on April 14, 1810, in Strafford, Vermont. He attended the Thetford and Randolph Academies but ended his formal education at age fifteen to work as a merchant's clerk, an event that probably influenced his commitment to democratize the American educational system. Although he never attended a university, Morrill was awarded an honorary degree from the University of Pennsylvania in 1884.

After a career as a local businessman, Morrill became interested in politics in the 1850s. In 1852, he was elected as a Whig representative to the Thirty-fourth Congress and as a Republican to the five succeeding Congresses. Morrill helped found the Republican Party in Vermont, and as a political leader he worked to maintain harmony within the party. During his twelve years as a representative, he was the author of the Tariff of 1861, usually referred to as the Morrill Tariff, as well as of the Land Grant Colleges Act. Both acts became strongly associated with their creator. The Tariff of 1861was consistent with Morrill's fiscal conservatism and introduced high import duties to protect American industry from overseas competition. Morrill opposed resorting to paper money during and after the U.S. Civil War and various proposals for the use of silver as a monetary standard.

Because the Land Grant Colleges Act helped to establish institutions that introduced agricultural and technical subjects in higher education, Morrill has become known as “the Father of the Agricultural Colleges.” Because of his crucial contribution to higher education, many colleges established under the act have a Morrill Hall in his honor. In the Thirty-ninth Congress, Morrill served as chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means. During his years as a representative, Morrill also sponsored the Anti-Bigamy Act of 1862, which outlawed the Mormon practice of plural marriages and limited church ownership in any territory of the United States to $50,000. This second restriction also targeted the Mormons, trying to limit their ownership in Utah. Although Lincoln signed the act, no funds were allocated for its enforcement.

In 1866 Morrill was elected as a Republican to the Senate, where he was reelected five consecutive times. He remained in the Senate for almost thirty-one years, until his death. He established a record for longevity, serving in both houses for forty-three years. He also acted as chairman of the Committee on Public Buildings and Grounds, where he played a major role in obtaining the current Library of Congress main building through his work on the Joint Select Committee on Additional Accommodations for the Library. He also served on the Committee on Finance, as regent of the Smithsonian Institution (1883–1898), and as trustee of the University of Vermont (1865–1898). He died in Washington, D.C., on December 28, 1898. He is buried in the City Cemetery in Strafford, Vermont. In 1999 the U.S. Postal Service released a 55-cent postage stamp that paid homage to his role in establishing the land-grant colleges, the forerunners of many state universities.